As Luo Zhao left, Gu Chengyin also emerged from the main hall.
Without delay, he walked straight toward the side hall where he was staying.
The matters regarding the secret passage and reinforcements were personally handled by Luo Zhao, so there was no need for him to intervene for the time being.
In contrast, Xiao Li'er, who had been shoved onto him by Lyu Fang, seemed more like a troublesome matter that required priority handling.
Passing through a few corridors and bypassing a courtyard, the secluded side hall came into view.
The hall doors were slightly ajar. The two low-ranking female officials on duty hurriedly bowed upon seeing his return.
"Where is that little eunuch?" Gu Chengyin asked casually without stopping his steps.
One of the female officials respectfully replied, "To the Marquis, the person you mentioned asked this humble servant for a fitted female official's daily uniform shortly after entering, saying it was by your order. Then she went to the bathing room in the rear chamber and has not come out yet."
A female official's uniform? Gu Chengyin raised his eyebrows slightly.
She moved quite fast. It seemed she was impatient to get rid of that eunuch outfit.
But that was fine. Since she was to stay by his side as a maid, she naturally couldn't wear a eunuch's uniform anymore, lest it arouse unnecessary suspicion.
"Understood." He nodded and pushed the door open, stepping into the hall.
Sunlight spilled in through the carved window lattices, casting shadows on the floor. The air was filled with a faint sandalwood scent, creating a tranquility that was entirely out of place with the surging undercurrents of the outside world.
Gu Chengyin sat down on a rosewood armchair in the parlor and casually pulled a leisure book about the geography and customs of the Great Luo from the nearby bookshelf to flip through.
Time slowly ticked away, and the sound of turning pages was exceptionally clear in the silence.
After an unknown amount of time—perhaps fifteen minutes, perhaps less—a series of light footsteps came from the direction of the rear chamber and stopped outside the parlor door.
The footsteps carried a cautious probing—not deliberately lightened to the point of being stealthy, but rather the careful approach of a newcomer who did not yet know the master's temperament.
"Knock, knock."
Two crisp knocks rang out.
Gu Chengyin lifted his eyes from the book, cast his gaze toward the slightly ajar door, and spoke calmly, "Come in."
The door was slowly pushed open from the outside, and a delicate silhouette walked in against the sunlight from outside.
When he saw the person's appearance clearly, Gu Chengyin couldn't help but freeze, a clear flash of surprise in his eyes.
Xiao Li'er was no longer the little eunuch who kept her head down and tried to blend into the background.
She had changed into a standard female official's pale lotus-colored cross-collared ruqun, paired with a moon-white waistband and sleeve trims. The fabric was soft and perfectly tailored, tracing the budding curves of the young girl just right.
Her short hair was as black as ink, making her already fair skin look even more translucent.
A few slightly longer strands of hair rested softly against her cheeks and neck, adding a touch of gentleness.
The makeup on her face had mostly been washed away. The stiff white powder and deliberately drawn thick eyebrows from before were gone, revealing her natural skin tone and eyebrow shape.
Those exceptionally large eyes were still as bright as stars, but now they had shed the deliberate fawning of her eunuch disguise, leaving behind an almost blank calmness.
The outer corners of her eyes drooped slightly. When she looked at people, she seemed to carry three parts scrutiny, three parts indifference, and three parts of an indescribable sense of weariness.
Exquisite, yet cold.
Beautiful, yet world-weary.
She was like a meticulously carved piece of jade that had been accidentally frozen; beautiful as it was, it lacked the vibrant warmth of life.
If Gu Chengyin were to use the aesthetics and vocabulary from before his transmigration to describe her, she was a world-weary loli with a top-tier character model.
Compared to her previous appearance as a little eunuch, she was like a completely different person. The sheer contrast was staggering.
After a brief moment of being stunned, Gu Chengyin quickly concealed the surprise in his eyes. A gentle smile curled his lips, as if he were merely looking at a little girl who had changed into some pretty clothes.
He put down the book in his hand, leaned back slightly, and cast a peaceful gaze upon the somewhat uneasy Xiao Li'er, teasing her in a relaxed tone:
"Whoa, with this change of outfit, I almost didn't recognize you. So Xiao Li'er has been hiding herself so deeply? That previous look really did you an injustice."
Sure enough, upon hearing Gu Chengyin's words, a trace of emotion flickered across Xiao Li'er's almost expressionless face.
She turned her head away, avoiding Gu Chengyin's gaze, and looked at a vase in the corner of the parlor, as if the few sprigs of wintersweet arranged inside had suddenly become incredibly fascinating.
Gu Chengyin didn't continue to pressure her. Instead, he looked away, as if his previous teasing was just a casual remark.
Then, he spoke in a more formal tone:
"I have already reported your matter to His Highness."
Hearing the words His Highness, Xiao Li'er immediately turned her head back. Her gaze refocused on Gu Chengyin's face, and her blank eyes gained a bit of intensity.
Gu Chengyin continued, "His Highness is highly perceptive. Considering Eunuch Lyu's 'good intentions' and the current situation, he has granted special permission for you to stay by my side."
He paused and clearly articulated a few words: "To be my personal maid."
"Personal maid..."
Xiao Li'er softly repeated the phrase. Her voice was much clearer and more melodious than when she responded as a eunuch.
And in that instant, Gu Chengyin clearly saw tiny sparks suddenly burst within those large eyes that had been shrouded in a world-weary mist, rapidly igniting into two clusters of exceptionally brilliant light!
Was it because she felt reassured by obtaining the clear identity of a personal maid? Or was it because of something else?
Gu Chengyin didn't delve into it. He followed his own train of thought and continued speaking, his tone turning somewhat serious:
"Since His Highness has given the order, I shall naturally comply. However, there are some things that must be said upfront..."
"If this lowly servant..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the normally quiet Xiao Li'er suddenly spoke up:
"Tells anyone about anything I see or hear without the Marquis's permission."
She enunciated every word, her voice echoing in the silent parlor:
"Then may this lowly servant be struck by lightning, have her soul entirely destroyed, never be reincarnated for all eternity, and die without a burial place!"
A venomous oath!
And an extremely ruthless oath that left no room for leeway!
In this world that firmly believed in the cycle of Heavenly Dao and where immortal cultivation was possible, the weight of such an oath was far beyond that of an ordinary promise.
Gu Chengyin remained silent for a few breaths, his gaze slowly sweeping across Xiao Li'er's earnest, world-weary little face.
Finally, his serious expression softened. He let out a light breath, as if accepting this sudden declaration of loyalty.
"Never mind."
Gu Chengyin waved his hand, his tone gentle. "Since you have such intentions and have made such a heavy oath, it would make me seem unreasonable to remain suspicious. Just remember your oath today."
He paused, remembering something else, and his gaze landed on Xiao Li'er with a hint of contemplation.
"However, the name Li'er..." Gu Chengyin frowned slightly, seemingly considering his words:
"It's fine to use as a nickname, but as my personal maid, you should have a more proper designation."
He looked at her, inquiry in his eyes. "Since you are following me, take my surname."
"As for your name... how about calling you Gu Xiaoli?"
Gu Xiaoli.
Taking the master's surname was a tremendous grace and recognition in the Great Luo. It meant being taken under the master's wing, signifying a relationship far more intimate than an ordinary master and servant.
Li'er, who had remained expressionless up until now, heard the name Gu Xiaoli. At those words, her large, world-weary eyes burst with a radiant light even more dazzling than before.
After a few breaths, she suddenly snapped back to reality. She immediately bent her knees, respectfully performing a grand bow.
"This lowly servant thanks the Marquis for bestowing this name!"
This time, her voice finally held a trace of the youthful vitality appropriate for someone her age.
"Rise. From now on, do not refer to yourself as a lowly servant. I do not like it."
Gu Chengyin spoke gently, "Come with me to check on His Highness."
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
g Yu was preparing for retirement when her organization decided to eliminate her. She transmigrated to a zombie apocalypse world. However, a tiny unexpected situation occurred: She somehow transformed into an adorable little girl?!
ut it can buy an entire year of absolutely perfect training results! Su Yu stared at his empty wallet and decisively opened up various online loan platforms. “Borrow a thousand bucks! Recharge my vitality!” Boom! His vitality broke a hundred points, shattering the limits of the human body! “Borrow ten thousand bucks! Recharge my combat skills!” Boom! A basic punching technique so common it was everywhere instantly maxed out, revealing the ultimate assassination technique of Five Elements Unity—Inner Force! When a rich kid hired assassins for a midnight ambush, aiming to break both of his legs, they instead ran headfirst into a monster—a human-shaped tyrannosaur, brimming with dragon-like vitality. With just two fingers, Su Yu snapped a steel staff reinforced with alloy. Staring at the killer’s stash of stolen cash—a staggering quarter-million dollars—he showed a corporate-sincere smile: “Thanks for the pre-exam gift pack, Mr. Zhao! I’m gonna go re-invest this!” Three days later, at the National Martial Arts College Entrance Exam, while everyone else struggled just to reach the passing line, Su Yu threw a single punch—and more than a thousand vitality points literally detonated the entire arena!
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
